Galloway's EyeCan awards recognise inspirational people

Nicola Jaques

Inspirational people living with sight loss have been celebrated at a prestigious awards ceremony set-up by Preston based charity Galloway’s.

Almost 120 people were nominated for the EyeCan Awards, now in their second year. The ceremony took place at Wellington Park in Leyland.

In work award winner Jeanette Binns

The awards recognise the extraordinary achievements of people across the north west living with sight loss.

Stuart Clayton, chief executive of Galloway’s, said: “There are an estimated 163,000 people living with sight loss across the north west alone. We hear so often about the devastation that sight loss causes, and rightly so.

“Being diagnosed with a permanent sight loss condition is a life-changing event. Galloway’s and other sight loss organisations exist to support people who receive that news.

"However, the EyeCan awards allow us to tell the other end to that story, the part where people use their inner strength, talents and determination to achieve the most amazing things in spite of their impairment. And we love that we are able to celebrate those achievements in public, giving people the recognition they deserve.”

The guest speaker for the evening was Kevin Fitzpatrick, political correspondent for BBC North West. Kevin entertained the room with stories and anecdotes from his career and in doing so, also highlighted the importance of not letting obstacles, in whatever form, get in the way of striving to achieve ambitions.

He added: “Galloway’s does some outstanding work for people living in the county and we’ve had a strong relationship with the team for many years, with the charity attending our Water Park Lakeland Adventure Centre in Coniston each year with a group of blind and partially sighted people.

"We’re proud to give something back to this amazing organisation and felt very proud to have honoured some truly inspirational people on the night”